Strutting down the catwalk in a Cindy Castro frock, 37-year-old Amazon worker Samari Jomar Mercado looked like an ethereal punk-rock fairy: sleeve tattoos, lace bag on her wrist and a white ribbon billowing from her nape like a flag. After a dramatic pivot and pit pose, she paused to salute her rapturous crowd.
“For years she worked 10 hours a day, six days a week … lifting heavy items at a fast pace,” emcee Lisa Ann Walter announced as Mercado sauntered by. “She circulated a petition among her co-workers and filed an OSHA complaint about air quality … and is here today to show others that you don’t have to be afraid to speak up.”
